1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for a garment hanger capable of converting between a collapsed configuration and an extended configuration.
2. Description of the Related Art
The retail garment market expends a large amount of money in the shipment and transportation of goods and proper display devices both around the United States and worldwide. In a typical retail store, many garments such as shirts, pants, dresses, etc. that may be worn by a customer are displayed for purchase upon hangers. These hangers provide a convenient means of exhibiting the garments that are for sale to potential buyers. A potential buyer is able to view and inspect the entire garment, feel the garment's material as it drapes on the hanger, and easily carry the garment to a dressing room to try it on or transport the garment to a cashier for purchase. Given the number of garments offered in even a single store location, the number of hangers needed and the costs associated with the manufacture, transport and storage of such hangers can quickly reach enormous numbers.
Stores incur these substantial expenses in both purchasing the garment hangers themselves and paying the transportation/storage fees of such hangers throughout the desired geographic regions. One major problem with conventional hangers is its large and awkward size or dimensions that make compact packing for transport or storage more difficult. In order to function in a desirable fashion for the display of garments to customers, a conventional hanger typically includes two extending arms making up a bottom end for draping or otherwise holding a garment in place upon the hanger. These extending arms are generally long and skinny compared to the rest of the hanger and substantially impact the overall width of the hanger. In addition to packing cost concerns, the awkward sizing or proportions of conventional hangers, in part due to the extending arms, makes maintaining proper placement within a shipping container (e.g., to prevent slippage or breakage) difficult. In light of these and other issues, an improved garment hanger capable of being more easily and/or less expensively packed, stored, and/or transported would be desired.